Francis Schaffner

University of Zurich | UZH · Institute of Parasitology

Among the invasive mosquitoes registered all over the world, Aedes species are particularly frequent and important. As several of them are potential vectors of disease, they present significant health concerns for 21st century Europe. Five species have established in mainland Europe, with two (Aedes albopictus and Aedes japonicus) becoming widespre...

The knowledge of the mosquito distribution in the Western Palaearctic region has significantly improved in recent decades. We here synthesise published records in an updated distribution chart. The western Palaearctic region is divided into 5 areas and 75 geographical units, the latter mainly considered on a country basis or on a geographical basis...

The global distribution of the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti is the subject of considerable attention because of its pivotal role as a biological vector of several high profile disease pathogens including dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever, and Zika viruses. There is also a lot of interest in the projected future species' distribution. However...

Mosquito-borne diseases such as chikungunya, dengue, Usutu or West Nile, have come back to the forefront in both human and animal health. To prevent outbreaks, it is necessary to acquire a solid knowledge of the mosquito fauna in the considered area. Therefore, and since the mosquito fauna of Luxembourg was only partially known, we suggested the co...

Sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae, Phlebotominae; Newstead, 1911) are widespread in Europe, being particularly common in the Mediterranean region but rare north of the Alps. Thus, Switzerland is an opportune place to investigate the sand fly fauna on both sides of the Alpine crest, in southern sub-Mediterranean climate and northern oceanic temperate...

Mosquitoes are important vectors of disease pathogens and multiple species are undergoing geographical shifts due to global changes. As such, there is a growing need for accurate distribution predictions. Ecological niche modelling (ENM) is an effective tool to assess mosquito distribution patterns and link these to underlying environmental prefere...

Phlebotomine sand flies are known vectors of pathogens important for public and veterinary health. They are well known to transmit protozoa parasites of the genus Leishmania. Despite their importance as vectors, sand fly distributions remain poorly understood, particularly in the Caribbean. We present the first observation of the sand fly Micropygo...

We report occurrence data of mosquitoes in Scotland which were routinely collated by the British Mosquito Group for the period 1886 to 1993 (232 records), and by the Mosquito Recording Scheme since 2005 (11 records). We also report a set of new field data mainly based on mosquito immature sampling in aquatic habitats during the summers 1998 and 201...

Sand flies are vectors of Leishmania spp. protozoa, phleboviruses and Bartonella bacilliformis . In this study we surveyed areas of central-western Europe, encompassing the northern limit of the known sand fly distribution, and investigated the relationship between their presence and environmental variables. In this area, very limited occurrence da...

This article presents the current state of knowledge of mosquito species (Diptera: Culicidae) occurring in Poland. In comparison to the most recently published checklists (1999 and 2007), which listed 47 mosquito species, four species (Aedes japonicus, Anopheles daciae, Anopheles hyrcanus, and Anopheles petragnani) are added to the Polish fauna. Ou...

A snapshot mosquito field survey was conducted in the Republic of Ireland in April-May 2017 and 2018 (VectorNet project) to provide mosquito distribution data. Morphological identification was completed by genetic analyses to determine species identity of members of the Maculipennis complex and the Pipiens Assemblage. A total of 52 samples, includi...

A snapshot mosquito field survey was conducted in the Republic of Ireland in April–May 2017 and 2018 (for the VectorNet project) to provide mosquito distribution data as there is a dearth of recent data available for that region. The occurrence data obtained serve as a baseline for a preliminary public and veterinary health risk assessment and to p...

Background and objective No autochthonous human cases of Japanese encephalitis (JE) have been reported to date in the European Union (EU). In this study, we assess the likelihood of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) introduction and transmission within the EU and propose outbreak response measures. Risk assessment Given the global geographical dis...

Anopheles algeriensis is a species generally rare in many European countries, locally abundant only in the presence of suitable breeding sites. Due to limited collection, An. algeriensis biology has been poorly investigated, and the involvement of the species in autochthonous malaria transmission is still debated. Mostly adult specimens had been re...

Set of Phlebotomine sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae, Phlebotominae) field trapping data collected by light traps and sticky papers at thirty-five sites disttributed over10 cantons of Switzerland, in 2009, 2010, 2011/2012 and 2016. Sand flies were collected mainly in cantons Ticino and Grisons, south to the Alps, with a few specimen collected in ca...

Because of the apparent northwards spread of canine leishmaniosis cases, we decided to investigate the occurrence of the potential vector species, namely Phlebotomine sand flies, in the Upper Rhine valley of Alsace, France. Trappings were performed in the natural regions of the Vosges foothills and the Alsatian Jura, which looked the most suitable...

Rift Valley fever (RVF) is a zoonotic vector-borne disease mainly transmitted by mosquitoes, and present in Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and the Indian Ocean. The endemic situation in Mauritania, and the recent outbreaks in Libya have raised concerns about the potential spread of the virus in the Mediterranean Basin, where competent mosquitoes ar...

Background Arthropod vectors such as ticks, mosquitoes, sandflies and biting midges are of public and veterinary health significance because of the pathogens they can transmit. Understanding their distributions is a key means of assessing risk. VectorNet maps their distribution in the EU and surrounding areas.AimWe aim to describe the methodology u...

Aedes invasive mosquitoes are a serious human health concern worldwide. The Asian tiger mosquito Aedes albopictus is considered one of the world’s worst invasive alien species. It is a nuisance species and a vector of arboviruses and Dirofilaria spp., causing negative socio-economic impacts. This article reports the detection of Ae. albopictus by c...

Context Despite numerous studies that showed negative effects of landscape anthropisation on species abundance and diversity, the relative effects of urbanisation, deforestation, and agricultural development as well as the spatial extent at which they act are much less studied. This is particularly the case for mosquitoes, which are the most import...

Vector-borne diseases are responsible for more than 17% of human cases of infectious diseases. In most situations, effective control of debilitating and deadly vector-bone diseases (VBDs), such as malaria, dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever, Zika and Chagas requires up-to-date, robust and comprehensive information on the presence, diversity, ecology...

1) Background: Qatar does not have any indigenous cases of dengue; however, the influx of immigrants from dengue endemic countries, the environment, and climate suitability for Aedes vector mosquitoes suggest a potential risk for local transmission. In this study, we investigated various demographic factors to determine the epidemiological features...

Aedes japonicus has expanded beyond its native range and has established populations in several European countries including Belgium where the species was first reported in 2002 at Natoye. During a recent nationwide monitoring program (MEMO, Monitoring of Exotic Mosquitoes, 2017-2020), Natoye was monitored to check for the efficiency of the intensi...

Accurate identification of insect species is an indispensable and challenging requirement for every entomologist, particularly if the species is involved in disease outbreaks. The European MediLabSecure project designed an identification (ID) exercise available to any willing participant with the aim of assessing and improving knowledge in mosquito...

The pathogen transmitting Aedes albopictus mosquito is spreading rapidly in Europe, putting millions of humans and animals at risk. This species is well-established in Albania since its first detection in 1979. The sterile insect technique (SIT) is increasingly gaining momentum worldwide as a component of area-wide-integrated pest management. Howev...

Background Colonization of large part of Europe by the Asian tiger mosquito Aedes albopictus is causing autochthonous transmission of chikungunya and dengue exotic arboviruses. While pyrethroids are recommended only to reduce/limit transmission, they are widely implemented to reduce biting nuisance and to control agricultural pests, increasing the...

Data set encompassing published historical (<1980) and modern (>=1980) distribution data of the invasive yellow fever mosquito Aedes aepgyti in the western palaearctic region, with all original references. Historical European distribution data collection was obtained through an online literature search in Ovid MEDLINE®, CAB direct, and Web of Scien...

Following the expansion of the invasive mosquito Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) through Spain along the Mediterranean coast, mosquito surveillance was established in Gibraltar in 2016. This paper reports on the first detection of Ae. albopictus in Gibraltar in 2017 as well as subsequent efforts to monitor the establishment of the species, in...

Human and animal vector-borne diseases, particularly mosquito-borne diseases, are emerging or re-emerging worldwide. Six Aedes invasive mosquito (AIM) species were introduced to Europe since the 1970s: Aedes aegypti, Ae. albopictus, Ae. japonicus, Ae. koreicus, Ae. atropalpus and Ae. triseriatus. Here, we report the results of AIMSurv2020, the firs...

The Mosquito Alert dataset includes occurrence records of adult mosquitoes collected worldwide in 2014–2020 through Mosquito Alert, a citizen science system for investigating and managing disease-carrying mosquitoes. Records are linked to citizen science-submitted photographs and validated by entomologists to determine the presence of five targeted...

The Mosquito Alert dataset includes occurrence records of adult mosquitoes collected worldwide in 2014–2020 through Mosquito Alert, a citizen science system for investigating and managing disease-carrying mosquitoes. Records are linked to citizen science-submitted photographs and validated by entomologists to determine the presence of five targeted...

Field observation of occurrences of mosquito species in various environments in Luxembourg, between 1997 and 2018. Larval sampling and adult catches performed within an intuitive sampling strategy throughout the country, inspecting places that look suitable for mosquito occurrence. Samples identified by morphology, PCR and sequencing, or MALDI-TOF...

Public and animal health authorities face many challenges in surveillance and control of vector-borne diseases. Those challenges are principally due to the multitude of interactions between vertebrate hosts, pathogens, and vectors in continuously changing environments. VectorNet, a joint project of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the...

The Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, is an invasive mosquito species that is considered a potential vector of about 22 arboviruses, among which dengue, chikungunya and Zika. Here we report the first record of Aedes albopictus in the territory of the Republic of Kosovo. The first finding, in July 2020, was driven by a photo of an adult mosqui...

In Albania, mosquito fauna studies have been carried out since 1918 by foreign researchers and in 1950-1979 by J. Adhami. Additional research studies on mosquito fauna and its role in public health in Albania were carried out by the Laboratory of Medical Entomology at IPH during the period 2001-2009. Here we report afield survey implemented through...

Mosquito-borne infections have considerable consequences for public health. The mere presence of a single case of vector-borne disease (VBD) introduces a risk to the local community particularly when associated with the compatible vector, host, and suitable environmental factors. Presently, there is no well-established vector control and surveillan...

2021 is a landmark year for the Journal of the European Mosquito Control Association (JEMCA)! In the last 12 months we moved from self-publishing to the professional publisher Wageningen Academic Publishers (WAP). This is intended to gain efficiency in the submission, reviewing and publishing process, and also to get better indexed and evaluated, t...

The current study presents a success story where through a small network of citizen scientists original information regarding the occurrence of Aedes cretinus was received, suggesting the absence of invasive Aedes species on the island of Cyprus. Citizen science records show that Ae. cretinus most likely has an island wide spatial distribution whil...

Aedes japonicus has established in many European countries. Our study had two objectives: (1) investigate the origin of new introductions in eastern Belgium; and (2) verify the origin of specimens that were recently recorded at Natoye, while the species was declared eliminated after control campaigns. To this end, genotypic variation at 7 microsate...

Steeds meer mensen melden invasieve steekmuggen, niet louter professionals of amateurs met een achtergrond in de entomologie. Er zijn goede Engelstalige determinatiewerken voor het op naam brengen van steekmuggen, maar die sleutels zijn vooral bedoeld voor getrainde entomologen. Deze soortzoeker richt zich op geïnteresseerden zonder voorkennis en b...

The common house mosquito, Culex pipiens s. l. is part of the morphologically hardly or non-distinguishable Culex pipiens complex. Upcoming molecular methods allowed us to identify members of mosquito populations that are characterized by differences in behavior, physiology, host and habitat preferences and thereof resulting in varying pathogen loa...

Aedes albopictus was recorded in Vienna, Austria, in August 2020 for the first time. The species was found to occur in three sites within the city; morphology-based monitoring was followed by DNA-barcoding. Mitochondrial COI barcode sequences recovered three different haplotypes, however this data does not reveal whether single or multiple introduc...

More and more people are getting involved in the surveillance of invasive mosquito species in the EU/EEA, not just professionals with formal training in entomology. There are many taxonomic keys available for identifying mosquitoes of medical and veterinary importance, but they are almost all designed for professionally trained entomologists.The cu...

Aedes albopictus is a known vector of dengue and chikungunya. Understanding the population dynamics characteristics of vector species is of pivotal importance to optimise surveillance and control activities, to estimate risk for pathogen-transmission, and thus to enhance support of public health decisions. In this paper we used a seasonal activity...

Background Aedes japonicus japonicus has expanded beyond its native range and has established in multiple European countries, including Belgium. In addition to the population located at Natoye, Belgium, locally established since 2002, specimens were recently collected along the Belgian border. The first objective of this study was therefore to inve...

Vector-borne diseases (VBDs) have re-emerged worldwide due to urbanisation, increase in travel and climate change, becoming a major and serious threat to global public health. In Qatar, the concern has recently risen because of the attribution of the soccer 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar ™ , which necessitates fulfilling requirements in terms of prevent...

Rodents carry many ectoparasites, such as ticks, lice, fleas, and mites, which have potential public health importance. Middle Eastern countries are hotspots for many emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, such as plague, leishmaniasis, Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever, and Q fever, due to their ecological, socioeconomic, and political divers...

The overwintering strategy of the mosquito Culex modestus, an important West Nile virus (WNV) vector in Europe, was explored under field conditions in reedbed (Phragmites australis) ecosystems in early 2019. A total of 30 Cx. modestus females were found in a BG-Sentinel trap placed in a plastic greenhouse as well as in a reference BG-Sentinel trap...

Ectoparasites are the organisms, such as tick, lice, flea, and mite, which infest the external surface of a host. These parasites can cause a number of physical disorders to the host, including hypersensitivity and skin lesions. They can act as vectors of a number of pathogens including Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, Borrelia, and Rickettsia. Rod...

Background: Since the huge epidemic of Zika virus (ZIKV) in Brazil in 2015, questions were raised to understand which mosquito species could transmit the virus. Aedes aegypti has been described as the main vector. However, other Aedes species (e.g. Ae. albopictus and Ae. japonicus) proven to be competent for other flaviviruses (e.g. West Nile, den...

The Aedes invasive mosquitoes COST Action (AIM–COST) is a gender, age and geographically balanced network of members from critical stakeholder sectors in EU and neighbouring countries. The Action assesses and reviews current Aedes mosquito surveillance, control and analysis practices, and aims to 1) harmonise best practice guidelines, surveillance...

Résumé En plus d'être vecteur des virus du chikungunya, de la dengue et du Zika, le moustique tigre asiatique, Aedes albopictus, est également l'une des espèces les plus invasives au monde. Ainsi ses caractéristiques biologiques (œufs résistants et diapausants) et comportementale (suivre l'Homme dans les véhicules) lui ont permis de coloniser tous...

Résumé Parmi les nombreuses espèces de moustiques décrites, seule une petite proportion est responsable de transmissions d’agents pathogènes à l’homme. Les espèces invasives comme le moustique tigre comptent parmi les vecteurs les plus efficaces (dengue, chikungunya, Zika). L’identification précise des espèces, indispensable, n’est pas aisée. La mé...

Background: In 2016, a field study was implemented in all Armenian provinces in order to update knowledge on the presence and distribution of both native and invasive mosquito species. Larvae and adult mosquitoes were sampled and identified on the basis of their morphology. Supplementary field surveys were performed in 2017-2018. Results: Betwee...

Assessing mosquito biodiversity is important for disease surveillance and ecosystem health assessments. Such studies are particularly needed in regions like the Caribbean, which have experienced a series of recent mosquito borne disease outbreaks but received little attention regarding its invertebrate biodiversity. Here, we report on results from...

Wetlands provide multiple services to human societies. Despite policies dedicated to their protection, current European policies do not address the need to balance mosquito management approaches to mitigate dis‐services to human health and well‐being while ensuring that wetland conservation goals are met. Herein, we outline criteria for considerati...

EFSA has commissioned the VectorNet consortium to undertake a series of spatial distribution models for seven potential mosquito vectors of Rift Valley fever virus, namely Aedes albopictus, Aedes caspius, Aedes detritus, Aedes japonicus, Aedes vexans, Culex pipiens and Culex theileri. The modelling used the distribution data held within the VectorN...

Aedes albopictus, also known as the “Asian Tiger Mosquito”, is an invasive mosquito species to Europe causing high concern in public health due to its severe nuisance and its vectorial capacity for pathogens such as dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever and Zika. Consequently, the responsible authorities implement management activities to reduce its po...

Standard Operational Procedures – Public tender template for the selection of Pest Control Operators, as an Annex to the article "Practical management plan for invasive mosquito species in Europe: I. Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus)", published in Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease, 2020.

Standard Operational Procedures for bioassays, as an Annex to the article "Practical management plan for invasive mosquito species in Europe: I. Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus)", published in Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease, 2020.

Standard Operational Procedures for quality control on emergency treatments, as an Annex to the article "Practical management plan for invasive mosquito species in Europe: I. Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus)", published in Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease, 2020.

Standard Operational Procedures for quality control on larval treatment of road drains, as an Annex to the article "Practical management plan for invasive mosquito species in Europe: I. Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus)", published in Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease, 2020.

Standard Operational Procedures for emergency vector control in case of dengue, chikungunya and Zika detection, as an Annex to the article "Practical management plan for invasive mosquito species in Europe: I. Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus)", published in Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease, 2020.

Standard Operational Procedures – Template for mayor ordinance, as an Annex to the article "Practical management plan for invasive mosquito species in Europe: I. Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus)", published in Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease, 2020.

Standard Operational Procedures for quality control of Aedes albopictus monitoring, as an Annex to the article "Practical management plan for invasive mosquito species in Europe: I. Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus)", published in Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease, 2020.

Standard Operational Procedures for egg counting, as an Annex to the article "Practical management plan for invasive mosquito species in Europe: I. Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus)", published in Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease, 2020.

Standard Operational Procedures for ovitrap field management, as an Annex to the article "Practical management plan for invasive mosquito species in Europe: I. Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus)", published in Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease, 2020.

Background Since the huge epidemic of Zika virus (ZIKV) in Brazil in 2015, questions were raised to understand which mosquito species could transmit the virus. Although Aedes aegypti has been described as the main vector, other Aedes species (e.g. Ae. albopictus and Ae. japonicus) which can potentially transmit viruses from the same family (Flavivi...